UMD Strategic Plan
Endorsed by the Campus Assembly on April 26, 2011
Approved by Chancellor Black on May 3, 2011

An Inclusive and Collaborative Planning Process

The UMD Strategic Plan is the product of an inclusive, collaborative process involving the entire campus as well as Duluth community leaders. Because UMD’s planning is “rolling,” the document will be reviewed, assessed, and refined annually.

UMD’s Vision Statement describes our ideal future and the institution’s aspirations. It guides institutional decision-making and priority setting. The year 2020 serves as our target for achieving this new vision.

UMD’s Campus Goals define the six major initiatives leading to the realization of our new vision. They focus on the primary programs and activities for moving us forward within the next three to five years.

UMD’s Campus Action Plan delineates specific measurable steps for achieving the six goals. Some are short-term, to be completed within a year or two, while others are long-term, intended to be accomplished over a period of several years.

Introducing a New Vision

Serving the people of Minnesota and beyond, the University of Minnesota Duluth takes full advantage of its Northeast Minnesota location on the dramatic shores of Lake Superior to offer a quality living and learning experience. An integral part of the University of Minnesota System, UMD takes pride in its collaborative programs and initiatives with other System campuses. We nurture student success in an academic culture of high expectations through a learning-centered environment characterized by innovative comprehensive undergraduate and graduate programs, student life initiatives, discipline-specific and interdisciplinary research opportunities, creative endeavors, and thriving international exchanges.

Our new vision focuses on students learning and growing through experience, critical inquiry, and interaction with other learners. An enhanced research presence leading to regional accomplishments will ultimately result in UMD’s recognition as a world-class center of scholarly outreach. At the same time, we build upon our reputation for excellence in recreational programs, student life, and intercollegiate athletics, thereby providing a holistic experience for students.

We encourage the ability to speak honestly about issues and ourselves by fostering a campus culture that welcomes students, faculty, staff, and guests to an inclusive learning climate committed to diversity, equity, and social justice. We serve the educational needs of indigenous peoples, their economic growth, their culture, and the sovereignty of the American Indian nations of the region, the state, and North America.

UMD eagerly embraces a global future while maintaining a strong presence in the cultural, economic, and intellectual life of the Duluth community, the Northland, the state, and the nation. By strengthening and firmly establishing the centrality of international activities on and away from campus, we leverage our place within the global strategies of the University of Minnesota System. We endeavor to become and remain a model of community engagement and service which improves the quality of life for all and deepens the understanding, meaning, and purpose of the UMD educational experience.

Core Values

To promote student success and to enrich the educational experience, students, staff and faculty at UMD strive to learn, work, and live in accord with the following core values:

Learning. We educate students through an integrative learning-centered environment that fosters a lifelong pursuit of wisdom.

Discovery. We discover, create, and share knowledge.

Engagement. We actively collaborate with each other and the larger community to identify and achieve common goals.

Inclusiveness. We respect and embrace the diversity of individuals, perspectives, and ideas and promote social justice.

Sustainability. We balance current environmental, economic, and social needs with those of future generations.

Integrity. We adhere to the highest ethical standards and take responsibility for our ideas and actions.

Excellence. We achieve excellence through creativity, continuous improvement, and innovation.

Mission Statement

The University of Minnesota Duluth integrates liberal education, research, creative activity, and public engagement and prepares students to thrive as lifelong learners and globally engaged citizens.

Vision Statement

The University of Minnesota Duluth will build upon its unique land-grant and sea-grant traditions to become a premier comprehensive university recognized as world class for its learning-centered student experiences, research, creative activities, and public engagement.

We will educate students to be engaged, lifelong learners through our rich learning-centered and innovative curricula and student life experiences.

We will prepare graduates who are sought after by employers because of their cultural, global, and professional competence.

We will address issues central to the global society’s scientific, cultural, economic, and artistic vitality through research and creative inquiry.

We will become a world leader in learning and research opportunities by leveraging the region’s unique natural, human, and cultural resources.

We will serve the educational needs of indigenous peoples, as well as the economic growth, cultural preservation, and sovereignty of the American Indian nations of the region, the state and North America.

We will create a campus that exemplifies resource sustainability, technology and information integration, global perspectives and connections, social justice, and collaboration.

We will be central to the cultural, economic, and intellectual life of Duluth and surrounding communities.